You can save this article by registering for free here. Or sign-in if you have an account.
My good friend Dean Hueman of Focus Communications — their offices are in the CN Tower, y’know — was just doing his job getting the word out about the Toast of The Town, this Saturday night at the River Cree Hotel and Casino.
Subscribe now to read the latest news in your city and across Canada.
Subscribe now to read the latest news in your city and across Canada.
Create an account or sign in to continue with your reading experience.
Funds raised go to a south-side haven we all hope we don’t have to get to know intimately, but if we do, we thank the Good Lord it’s there: the Cross Cancer Institute.
The annual event honours someone who has done something amazing in their lives, and Edmonton has been the beneficiary of their efforts.
And this year, Cal Nichols is the gentleman who is being celebrated, as he certainly should, Saturday.
Hueman sent me a note recently asking me if I would be interested in talking to Nichols.
Now, I always welcome the chance to have a conversation with Nichols because I always — and I mean always — learn something new from him.
But no thanks, Mr. Hueman.
I am going to use my columnist perk, and share my thoughts about Nichols.
Get the latest headlines, breaking news and columns.
By signing up you consent to receive the above newsletter from Postmedia Network Inc.
A welcome email is on its way. If you don't see it, please check your junk folder.
The next issue of The Winnipeg Sun's Daily Headline News will soon be in your inbox.
We encountered an issue signing you up. Please try again
I certainly have a few.
First, he has better timing than someone who shakes a mean tambourine.
When the Toast of the Town was announced a few months ago in the Hall of Fame Room — in Rogers Place, y’know — I was kind of concerned about the date of the event.
The third Saturday in April.
Hockey playoffs just getting started.
If the Edmonton Oilers opened the playoffs, at home, Saturday night, Nichols and all his hockey friends — and there are armies of them — could very well be listening to the Oilers broadcast, or, even having television sets plugged in around the banquet room to keep tabs on the game.
But give a tip of the hat to Asake, a Nigerian musician, who will be singing Saturday night at Rogers Place. That means the rink is not available.
No rink.
No Game 1 of the Stanley Cup playoffs.
Nichols and friends can enjoy the night Saturday without checking the scoreboard.
The ironic piece of this is such a scenario of worrying about the Oilers double-booking with the Toast of The Town event comes right around, back to Nichols.
Because when the Oilers were spinning the rumour mill with substantiated reports the team was moving away from Edmonton, Nichols spearheaded the charge to keep the team in Edmonton and solicited 38 business owners to come up with $60 million to keep an National Hockey League franchise in Edmonton. Interestingly, the only larger professional sports ownership group is the Green Bay Packers, who have 537,000 shareholders.
Moreover, the deal was worth multi million dollars. Yet, someone had to have that selfless drive to make a difference.
Nichols did. So isn’t it most appropriate to be celebrating Nichols Saturday, the closing day of National Volunteer Week?
Just sayin’
Sarah McLachlan is performing Saturday night at the Jubilee Auditorium and will, probably, be singing I Will Remember You.
And yes, Cal, I sure will remember you, for all you have done.
(You can donate at toastofthetownccf.com)
camtait58@gmail.com
Postmedia is committed to maintaining a lively but civil forum for discussion. Please keep comments relevant and respectful. Comments may take up to an hour to appear on the site. You will receive an email if there is a reply to your comment, an update to a thread you follow or if a user you follow comments. Visit our Community Guidelines for more information.
login
who are we?
contact us
qosheapp
Toi Staff
Gideon Levy
Belen Fernandez
Rami G Khouri
Mort Laitner
Rachel Marsden
Donald Low
Bradley Blankenship
Ali Fathollah-Nejad
Nikkei Editorial
Michael Kwet
visit website
